Everything about Piracy totally explained
Piracy is a
robbery committed at sea, or sometimes on the shore, without a
commission from a
sovereign nation (robbery with sovereign commission is
privateering, and distinct from piracy). Seaborne piracy against transport vessels remains a significant issue (with estimated worldwide losses of
US $13 to $16 billion per year), particularly in the waters between the
Pacific and
Indian Oceans,
off the Somali coast, and also in the
Strait of Malacca and
Singapore, which are used by over 50,000 commercial ships a year. A recent surge in piracy off the Somali coast spurred a multi-national effort led by the
United States to patrol the waters near the
Horn of Africa to combat piracy. While boats off the coasts of North Africa and the
Mediterranean Sea are still assailed by pirates, the
Royal Navy and the
U.S. Coast Guard have nearly eradicated piracy in U.S. waters and in the
Caribbean Sea.
Maritime piracy, according to the
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) of 1982, consists of any criminal acts of violence, detention, or depredation committed for private ends by the crew or the passengers of a private ship or aircraft that's directed on the high seas against another ship, aircraft, or against persons or property on board a ship or aircraft. Piracy can also be committed against a ship, aircraft, persons, or property in a place outside the jurisdiction of any state.
The
Jolly Roger is the traditional name for the
flags of European and American pirates and a symbol for piracy that has been adopted by film-makers and toy manufacturers.
Etymology
The
English "pirate" is newbed from the
Latin term
pirata, and ultimately from
Greek peira (πεῖρα) "attempt, experience", implicitly "to find luck on the sea". The word is also cognate to
peril. In 17th and 18th century sources the word is often rendered "pyrate". However, the term doesn't exclusively relate to robbery committed at sea, as other similar origins have a broader definition
(External Link
).
History
Ancient piracy
The earliest documented instances of piracy are the exploits of the
Sea Peoples who threatened the
Aegean and
Mediterranean in the 13th century BC. In
Classical Antiquity, the
Tyrrhenians and
Thracians were known as pirates. The island of
Lemnos long resisted
Greek influence and remained a haven for Thracian pirates. By the 1st century BC, there were pirate states along the
Anatolian coast, threatening the commerce of the
Roman Empire.
On one voyage across the
Aegean Sea in 75 BC,
Julius Caesar was kidnapped by
Cilician pirates and held prisoner in the
Dodecanese islet of
Pharmacusa. He maintained an attitude of superiority throughout his captivity. When the pirates thought to demand a ransom of twenty
talents of gold, Caesar is said to have insisted that he was worth at least fifty, and the pirates indeed raised the ransom to fifty talents. After the ransom was paid, Caesar raised a fleet, pursued and captured the pirates, and imprisoned them. The Senate finally invested
Pompey with powers to deal with piracy in 67 BC (the
Lex Gabinia), and Pompey after three months of naval warfare managed to suppress the threat. In the 3rd century, pirate attacks on
Olympos (city in
Anatolia) brought impoverishment. Among some of the most famous ancient pirateering peoples were the
Illyrians, populating the western Balkan peninsula. Constantly raiding the
Adriatic Sea, the Illyrians caused many conflicts with the
Roman Republic. It wasn't until 68 BC that the Romans finally conquered Illyria and made it a province, ending their threat.
In the Roman province of Britannia,
Saint Patrick was captured and enslaved by
Irish pirates.
Early
Polynesian
warriors attacked seaside and riverside villages. They used the sea for their
hit-and-run tactics - a safe place to retreat to if the battle turned against them.
Middle Ages
The widely known and far reaching pirates in medieval
Europe were the
Vikings, warriors and looters from
Scandinavia. They raided the coasts, rivers and inland cities of all Western Europe as far as
Seville, attacked by the Norse in 844. Vikings even attacked coasts of North Africa and Italy. They also plundered all the coasts of the
Baltic Sea, ascending the rivers of Eastern Europe as far as the Black Sea and Persia. The lack of centralized powers all over
Europe during the
Middle Ages favoured pirates all over the continent.
After the
Slavic invasions of the Balkan peninsula in the 5th and 6th centuries, a
Slavic tribe settled the land of
Pagania between
Dalmatia and
Zachlumia in the first half of the 7th century. These Slavs revived the old Illyrian piratical habits and often raided the Adriatic Sea. By 642 they invaded southern Italy and assaulted Siponte in
Benevento. Their raids in the Adriatic increased rapidly, until the whole Sea was no longer safe for travel.
The "
Narentines," as they were called, took more liberties in their raiding quests while the
Venetian Navy was abroad, as when it was campaigning in Sicilian waters in 827-82. As soon as the Venetian fleet would return to the Adriatic, the Narentines temporarily abandoned their habits again, even signing a Treaty in Venice and baptising their Slavic pagan leader into Christianity. In 834 or 835 they broke the treaty and again raided Venetian traders returning from Benevento, and all of Venice's military attempts to punish the Marians in 839 and 840 utterly failed. Later, they raided the Venetians more often, together with the
Arabs. In 846 the Narentines broke through to Venice itself and raided its lagoon city of Kaorle. In the middle of March of 870 they kidnapped the Roman Bishop's emissaries that were returning from the Ecclesiastical Council in Constantinople. This caused a Byzantine military action against them that finally brought Christianity to them.
After the
Arab raids on the
Adriatic coast c. 872 and the retreat of the Imperial Navy, the Narentines restored their raids of Venetian waters, causing new conflicts with the Italians in 887-888. The Narentine piracy traditions were cherished even while they were in
Serbia, serving as the finest Serb warriors. The Venetians futilely continued to fight them throughout the 10th-11th centuries.
In 937,
Irish pirates sided with the Scots, Vikings,
Picts, and Welsh in their invasion of England.
Athelstan drove them back.
In 12th century the coasts of west Scandinavia were plundered by
Slavic pirates from the southwest coast of Baltic Sea.
H Thomas Milhorn mentions a certain Englishman named
William Maurice, convicted of piracy in 1241, as the first person known to have been
hanged, drawn and quartered, which would indicate that the then-ruling King
Henry III took an especially severe view of this crime.
The
ushkuiniks were
Novgorodian pirates who looted the cities on the
Volga and
Kama Rivers in the 14th century.
As early as
Byzantine times, the
Maniots - one of
Greece's toughest populations - were known as pirates. The Maniots considered piracy as a legitimate response to the fact that their land was poor and it became their main source of income. The main victims of Maniot pirates were the
Ottomans but the Maniots also targeted ships of European countries.
Piracy on the Indian coast
Since the 14th century the
Deccan (Southern Peninsular region of India) was divided into two entities: on the one side stood the Muslim-ruled
Bahmani Sultanate, and on the other stood the Hindu kings rallied around the
Vijayanagara Empire. Continuous wars demanded frequent resupplies of fresh horses, which were imported through sea routes from Persia and Africa. This trade was subjected to frequent raids by thriving bands of pirates based in the coastal cities of Western India.
During the sixteenth century there was frequent European piracy against Mughal Indian vessels, especially those en route to Mecca for
hajj. The situation came to a head, when Portuguese attacked and captured the vessel
Rahimi which belonged to
Mariam Zamani the Mughal queen.
Piracy in East Asia
From the
13th century, Japan based
Wokou made their debut in
East Asia, initiating invasions that would persist for 300 years.
Piracy in South East Asia began with the retreating Mongol Yuan fleet after the betrayal by their Sri Vijayan allies in the war with Majapahit. They preferred the junk, a ship using a more robust sail layout. Marooned navy officers, consisting mostly of Cantonese and Hokkien tribesmen, set up their small gangs near river estuaries, mainly to protect themselves. They recruited locals as common foot-soldiers known as 'lang' (lanun) to set up their fortresses. They survived by utilizing their well trained pugilists, as well as marine and navigation skills, mostly along Sumatran and Javanese estuaries. Their strength and ferocity coincided with the impending trade growth of the maritime silk and spice routes.
However, the most powerful pirate fleets of East Asia were those of Chinese pirates during the mid-
Qing dynasty. Pirate fleets grew increasingly powerful throughout the early 19th century. The effects large-scale piracy had on the Chinese economy were immense. They preyed voraciously on China’s junk trade, which flourished in
Fujian and
Guangdong and was a vital artery of Chinese commerce. Pirate fleets exercised
hegemony over villages on the coast, collecting revenue by exacting tribute and running
extortion rackets. In 1802, the menacing Zheng Yi inherited the fleet of his cousin, captain Zheng Qi, whose death provided Zheng Yi with considerably more influence in the world of piracy. Zheng Yi and his wife,
Zheng Yi Sao (who would eventually inherit the leadership of his pirate confederacy) then formed a pirate coalition that, by 1804, consisted of over ten thousand men. Their military might alone was sufficient to combat the Qing navy. However, a combination of famine, Qing naval opposition, and internal rifts crippled piracy in China around the 1820s, and it has never again reached the same status.
The
Bugi sailors of
South Sulawesi were infamous as pirates who used to range as far west as
Singapore and as far north as the
Philippines in search of targets for piracy. The
Orang laut pirates controlled shipping in the
Straits of Malacca and the waters around Singapore.
Piracy in Eastern Europe
One example of a pirate republic in Europe from the 16th through the 18th century was
Zaporizhian Sich. Situated in the remote
Steppe, it was populated with Ukrainian peasants that had run away from their feudal masters, outlaws of every sort, destitute gentry, run-away slaves from Turkish
galleys, etc. The remoteness of the place and the rapids at the
Dnepr river effectively guarded the place from invasions of vengeful powers. The main target of the inhabitants of
Zaporizhian Sich who called themselves “
Cossacks” were rich settlements at the
Black Sea shores of
Ottoman Empire and
Crimean Khanate. By 1615 and 1625,
Zaporozhian Cossacks had even managed to raze townships on the outskirts of
Istanbul, forcing the
Ottoman Sultan to flee his palace.
Don Cossacks under
Stenka Razin even ravaged the
Persian coasts.
Piracy in North Africa
The Barbary pirates were pirates and
privateers that operated from North African (the "
Barbary coast") ports of
Tunis,
Tripoli,
Algiers,
Salé and ports in
Morocco, preying on shipping in the western
Mediterranean Sea from the time of the
Crusades as well as on ships on their way to Asia around Africa until the early 19th century. The coastal villages and towns of
Italy,
Spain and
Mediterranean islands were frequently attacked by them and long stretches of the Italian and Spanish coasts were almost completely abandoned by their inhabitants; after 1600 Barbary pirates occasionally entered the Atlantic and struck as far north as
Iceland . According to Robert Davis between 1 million and 1.25 million Europeans were captured by Barbary pirates and sold as
slaves in
North Africa and
Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 19th centuries. The most famous corsairs were the Ottoman
Barbarossa ("Redbeard"), and his older brother
Oruç,
Turgut Reis (known as
Dragut in the West),
Kurtoğlu (known as
Curtogoli in the West),
Kemal Reis,
Salih Reis and
Koca Murat Reis. A few Barbary pirates, such as
Jan Janszoon and
John Ward, were renegade Christians who had converted to Islam.
According to recent legal analysis by the
U.S. Supreme Court, the United States treated captured Barbary corsairs as
prisoners of war, indicating that they were considered as legitimate privateers by at least some of their opponents, as well as by their home countries.
Piracy in the Caribbean
The great or classic era of piracy in the
Caribbean extends from around 1560 up until the mid 1720s. The period during which pirates were most successful was from 1700 until the 1730s. Many pirates came to the Caribbean after the end of the
War of the Spanish Succession. Many people stayed in the Caribbean and became pirates shortly after that. Others, the
buccaneers, arrived in the mid-to-late
17th century and made attempts at earning a living by farming and hunting on
Hispaniola and nearby islands; pressed by Spanish raids and possibly failure of their means of making a living, they turned to a more lucrative occupation (not to mention more active and conducive to revenge). Caribbean piracy arose out of, and mirrored on a smaller scale, the conflicts over trade and colonization among the rival European powers of the time, including
England,
Spain,
Dutch United Provinces,
Portuguese Empire and
France. Most of these pirates were of
English, Dutch and French origin. Because Spain controlled most of the Caribbean, many of the attacked cities and ships belonged to the
Spanish Empire and along the East coast of America and the West coast of Africa. Some of the best-known pirate bases were New Providence, in the Bahamas from 1715 to 1725,
Tortuga established in the 1640s and
Port Royal after 1655. Among the most famous Caribbean pirates are
Edward Teach or "Blackbeard" and
Henry Morgan
Life as a pirate
In the popular modern imagination, pirates of the classical period were rebellious, clever teams who operated outside the restricting
bureaucracy of modern life. In reality, many pirates ate poorly, didn't become fabulously wealthy, and died young. Unlike traditional Western societies of the time, many pirate crews operated as limited
democracies. Both the captain and the
quartermaster were elected by the crew, they in turn appointed the other ship's officers. The captain of a pirate ship was often a fierce fighter in whom the men could place their trust, rather than a more traditional authority figure sanctioned by an elite. However, when not in battle, the quartermaster usually had the real authority. Many groups of pirates shared in whatever they seized; pirates injured in battle might be afforded special compensation. Often all of these terms were agreed upon and written down by the pirates, but these
articles could also be used as incriminating proof that they were outlaws. Pirates readily accepted outcasts from traditional societies, perhaps easily recognizing kindred spirits, and they were known to welcome them into the pirate fold. Such practices within a pirate crew were tenuous, however, and did little to mitigate the brutality of the pirate's way of life.
Even though pirates raided many ships, most didn't bury their treasure, or booty. Often, the "treasure" that was stolen was food, water, alcohol, weapons, or clothing. For this reason, there was no need for the pirates to bury these goods.
The classical age of piracy coexisted with a rise in British
imperialism which required merchant vessels to transport goods and warships to protect the trade ships from pirates and privateers. Living conditions on the warships were horrible even by 17th-century standards; sailors were often fed rotten, maggot-infested food, frequently suffered from
scurvy or other nutritional disorders, and could be counted lucky to escape their service without a crippling injury. British captains were known to have been extremely brutal; the captain held a nearly sovereign power aboard his ship and many were unafraid to abuse that power. To fill the warships, officers would forcibly
pressgang boys and young men to replace lost crew. The horrid living conditions, constant threat to life, and brutality of the captain and his officers pushed many men over the edge. Possessing seafaring skill, a learned intolerance for absolute authority, and a disdain for the motherland they might have believed abandoned them, many crews would simply
mutiny during an attack and offer themselves and their ship as a new pirate vessel and crew.
Brain damage
Much of the stereotypical demeanor of 17-18th century seafarers may be in part due to brain damage often due to the vast amounts of alcohol consumed. In the
Royal Navy the rum ration (or other spirits such as brandy) was a pint a day and the alcohol content was greater than at present, making this the equivalent of a bottle a day plus eight pints of small beer. Combined with head injuries from running into low bulkheads (which outnumbered battle injuries in the Royal Navy), this had the potential to lead to
Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Frontal lobe damage could cause a lack of inhibition in speech and behaviour often associated with pirates.
A major reason for such high alcohol consumption was the quality of the food rations. These were not necessarily bad, but were apt to be very bland, especially as the main item would be beef, which would be boiled in a copper vessel as this was less a fire risk than other forms of cooking.
Privateering lost international sanction under the
Declaration of Paris in 1856.
Commerce raiders
A wartime activity similar to piracy involves disguised
warships called
commerce raiders or
merchant raiders, which attack enemy shipping commerce, approaching by stealth and then opening fire. Commerce raiders operated successfully during the
American Revolution. During the
American Civil War, the
Confederacy sent out several commerce raiders, the most famous of which was the
CSS Alabama. During
World War I and
World War II,
Germany also made use of these tactics, both in the
Atlantic and
Indian Oceans. Since commissioned naval vessels were openly used, these commerce raiders shouldn't be considered even privateers, much less pirates - although the opposing combatants were vocal in denouncing them as such.
Modern piracy
Modern pirates favor small boats and taking advantage of the small crew numbers on modern cargo vessels. Modern pirates can be successful because a large amount of international commerce occurs via shipping. For commercial reasons, many cargo ships move through narrow bodies of water (such as the
Suez Canal, the
Panama Canal, and the
Strait of Malacca) making them vulnerable to be overtaken and boarded by small
motorboats. Other active areas include the
South China Sea and the
Niger Delta. As usage increases, many of these ships have to lower cruising speeds to allow for navigation and traffic control, making them prime targets for piracy. Small ships are also capable of disguising themselves as fishing vessels or cargo vessels when not carrying out piracy in order to avoid or deceive inspectors.
Also, pirates often operate in regions of developing or struggling countries with smaller navies and large trade routes. Pirates sometimes evade capture by sailing into waters controlled by their pursuer's enemies. With the end of the
Cold War, navies have decreased size and patrol, and trade has increased, making organized piracy far easier. Modern pirates are sometimes linked with organized-crime syndicates, but often are parts of small individual groups. Pirate attack crews may consist of 4 to 10 sailors for going after a ship's safe (raiding) or up to 70 (depending entirely on the ships and the ships crew size) if the plan is to seize the whole vessel.
The
International Maritime Bureau (IMB) maintains statistics regarding pirate attacks dating back to 1995. Their records indicate hostage-taking overwhelmingly dominates the types of violence against seafarers. For example in 2006, there were 239 attacks, 77 crew members were kidnapped and 188 taken hostage but
only 15 of the pirate attacks resulted in murder. In 2007 the attacks rose by 10% to 263 attacks. There was a 35% increase on reported attacks involving guns. Crew members that were injured was 64 compared to the 17 in 2006. That number doesn't include hostages/kidnapping where they were not injured.
In some cases, modern pirates are not interested in the cargo and are mainly interested in taking the personal belongings of the crew and the contents of the ship's safe, which might contain large amounts of cash needed for payroll and port fees. In other cases, the pirates force the crew off the ship and then sail it to a port to be repainted and given a new identity through false papers often purchased from corrupt or complicit officials.
Modern piracy can also take place in conditions of political unrest. For example, following the US withdrawal from
Vietnam, Thai piracy was aimed at the many Vietnamese who took to boats to escape. Further, following the disintegration of the government of
Somalia,
warlords in the region have attacked ships delivering
UN food aid.
Environmental action groups such as
Sea Shepherd have been accused of engaging in piracy and terrorism when they sink ships with
mines, scuttle them, or ram them and throw
butyric acid on their crews; although they carry firearms, they're not known to have fired them during attacks.
The attack against the U.S. cruise ship the
Seabourn Spirit offshore of Somalia in November 2005 is an example of the sophisticated pirates mariners face. The pirates carried out their attack more than offshore with speedboats launched from a larger mother ship. The attackers were armed with automatic firearms and an
RPG.
Many nations forbid ships to enter their territorial waters or ports if the crew of the ships are armed in an effort to restrict possible piracy. Shipping companies sometimes hire private security guards.
Modern definitions of piracy include the following acts:
Kidnapping of people for ransom
Robbery
Murder
Seizure of items or the ship
Sabotage resulting in the ship subsequently sinking
In modern times, ships and airplanes are hijacked for political reasons as well. The perpetrators of these acts could be described as pirates (for instance, the French for "plane hijacker" is pirate de l'air, literally "air pirate"), but in English are usually termed "hijackers". An example is the hijacking of the Italian civilian passenger ship Achille Lauro, which is generally regarded as an act of piracy.
Modern pirates also use a great deal of technology. It has been reported that crimes of piracy have involved the use of mobile phones, modern speedboats, assault rifles, shotguns, pistols, mounted machine guns, and even RPGs and grenade launchers. However, more primitive weapons such as knives, batons, or boat-hooks are also often used.
Trends
Reports of piracy attacks were declining worldwide since 2004, but seems to have bottomed out in 2007. Figures reported by the International Maritime Bureau indicate incident reporting fell for the third year in a row in 2006. Ships reported 239 incidents to the IMB during the year 2006, down from 276 in 2005, and 329 in 2004. But the piracy rose by 14 percent in the first nine months of 2007.
Yet hotspots remain. They include Indonesia, still the world’s most dangerous piracy region, Nigeria, Somalia, and the ports of Chittagong in Bangladesh and Santos in Brazil, according to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) 2006 Annual Report. Furthermore, experts caution that local problem areas can emerge quickly, despite a worldwide down trend in pirate attacks.
"When attacks hit a peak in 2000, at that time Somalia was just a blip on the radar screen," said the secretary-general of the Shipping Federation during an interview with the London Financial Times. "Then it becomes a big problem. Piracy tends to be a feature of areas where there's either lawlessness or real economic deprivation and it's very difficult to eradicate."
The recent downward trend in piracy worldwide follows a period when attacks tripled between 1993 and 2003. The first half of 2003 was the worst 6-month period on record, with 234 pirate attacks, 16 deaths, and 52 people injured worldwide. There were also 193 crew members held hostage during this period (External Link) (External Link). In the first 6 months of 2004, 182 reported cases of piracy turned up worldwide, 50 of which occurring in Indonesian waters (External Link).
The Piracy Reporting Centre of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) stated in 2004 that more pirate attacks in that year occurred in Indonesian waters (70 of 251 reported attacks) than in the waters of any other country. Of these attacks, a majority occurred in the Straits of Malacca. They also stated that of the attacks in 2004, oil and gas tankers and bulk carriers were the most popular targets with 67 attacks on tankers and 52 on bulk carriers.
Modern incidents
During the Troubles in Northern Ireland, two coaster ships were hijacked and sunk by the IRA in the lapse of a year, between February 1981 and February 1982.
In October of 1985, the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked off the coast of Egypt by terrorists from the Palestine Liberation Organization. The terrorists demanded the release of PLO operatives imprisoned in Israel. Following the Israelis' refusal, the terrorists shot disabled Jewish American tourist Leon Klinghoffer and dumped his body overboard.
A collision between the container ship Ocean Blessing and the hijacked tanker Nagasaki Spirit occurred in the Malacca Straits at about 23:20 on 19 September 1992. Pirates had boarded the Nagasaki Spirit, removed its captain from command, set the ship on autopilot and left with the ship's master for a ransom. The ship was left going at full speed with no one at the wheel. The collision and resulting fire took the lives of all the sailors of Ocean Blessing; from Nagasaki Spirit there were only 2 survivors. The fire on the Nagasaki Spirit lasted for six days; the fire aboard the Ocean Blessing burned for six weeks.
A Dutch motor tanker attacked outside the port of All Saints Bay in Brazil in November 1998. Multiple injuries.
The cargo ship Chang Song boarded and taken over by pirates posing as customs officials in the South China Sea in 1998. Entire crew of 23 was killed and their bodies thrown overboard. Six bodies were eventually recovered in fishing nets. A crackdown by the Chinese government resulted in the arrest of 38 pirates and the group's leader, a corrupt customs official, and 11 other pirates who were then executed.
The New Zealand environmentalist, yachtsman and public figure Sir Peter Blake was killed by Brazilian pirates in 2001.(External Link).
Pirates boarded the supertanker Dewi Madrim in March 2003 in the Malacca Strait. Articles like those written by the Economist indicate the pirates didn't focus on robbing the crew or cargo, but instead focused on learning how to steer the ship and stole only manuals and technical information. However, the original incident report submitted to the IMO by the IMB would indicate these articles are incorrect and misleading. See also: Letter to the Editor of Foreign Affairs.
The American luxury liner The Seabourn Spirit was attacked by pirates in November 2005 off the Somalian coast. There was one injury to a crewmember; he was hit by shrapnel.
Pirates boarded the Danish bulk carrier Danica White in June 2007 near the coast of Somalia. USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) tried to rescue the crew by firing several warning shots but wasn’t able to follow the ship into Somali waters.
In April 2008 pirates seized control of the French luxury yacht Le Ponant carrying 30 crew members off the coast of Somalia. The captives were released on payment of a ransom. The French military later captured some of the pirates.
Authorities estimate that only between 50%(External Link)(External Link) to as low as 10%(External Link) of pirate attacks are actually reported (so as not to increase insurance premiums).
Piracy in international law
Effects on international boundaries
During the 18th century, the British and the Dutch controlled opposite sides of the Straits of Malacca. Some pirates carried on activities similar to armed rebellion with the aim of resisting the colonisers. In order to put a stop to this, the British and the Dutch drew a line separating the Straits into two halves. The agreement was that each party would be responsible for combating piracy in their respective half. Eventually this line became the border between Malaysia and Indonesia in the Straits.
International law
Piracy is of note in international law as it's commonly held to represent the earliest invocation of the concept of universal jurisdiction. The crime of piracy is considered a breach of jus cogens, a conventional peremptory international norm that states must uphold. Those committing thefts on the high seas, inhibiting trade, and endangering maritime communication are considered by sovereign states to be hostis humani generis (enemies of humanity).
In English admiralty law, piracy was defined as petit treason during the medieval period, and offenders were accordingly liable to be drawn and quartered on conviction. Piracy was redefined as a felony during the reign of Henry VIII. In either case, piracy cases were cognizable in the courts of the Lord High Admiral. English admiralty vice-admiralty judges emphasized that "neither Faith nor Oath is to be kept" with pirates; for example contracts with pirates and oaths sworn to them were not legally binding. Pirates were legally subject to summary execution by their captors if captured in battle. In practice, instances of summary justice and annulment of oaths and contracts involving pirates don't appear to have been common.
Since piracy often takes place outside the territorial waters of any state, the prosecution of pirates by sovereign states represents a complex legal situation. The prosecution of pirates on the high seas contravenes the conventional freedom of the high seas. However, because of universal jurisdiction, action can be taken against pirates without objection from the flag state of the pirate vessel. This represents an exception to the principle extra territorium jus dicenti impune non paretur (the judgment of one who is exceeding his territorial jurisdiction may be disobeyed with impunity).
UNCLOS Article 101: Definition of Piracy
In the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) of 1982, "maritime piracy" consists of: » (a) any illegal acts of violence or detention, or any act of depredation, committed for private ends by the crew or the passengers of a private ship or a private aircraft, and directed:
:(i) on the high seas, against another ship or aircraft, or against persons or property on board such ship or aircraft; » :(ii) against a ship, aircraft, persons or property in a place outside the jurisdiction of any State;
(b) any act of voluntary participation in the operation of a ship or of an aircraft with knowledge of facts making it a pirate ship or aircraft; » (c) any act of inciting or of intentionally facilitating an act described in subparagraph (a) or (b).
IMB Definition of Piracy
The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) defines piracy as: » the act of boarding any vessel with an intent to commit theft or any other crime, and with an intent or capacity to use force in furtherance of that act.
Piracy in popular culture and fiction
sic] with the appearance of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island." Some inventions of pirate culture such as "walking the plank" were popularized by J. M. Barrie's novel, Peter Pan, where Captain Hook's pirates helped define the fictional pirate archetype. Robert Newton's portrayal of Long John Silver in Disney's 1950 film adaptation of Treasure Island also helped define the modern rendition of a pirate. The recent Pirates of the Caribbean films have helped kindle modern interest in piracy and have succeeded quite handsomely in box office grosses. Due to modern piracy's status as basically robbery mixed with violence, filmmakers don't commonly depict modern pirates in movies (with Piraty XX veka, Six Days Seven Nights, and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou being rare exceptions).
The classic Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The Pirates of Penzance focuses on The Pirate King and his hopeless band of pirates on the South coast of England. The Pirate King is often believed to be inspiration for Jack Sparrow.
Running Wild a long running Speed Metal/Power Metal act from Germany have utilized a piracy gimmick since the late 1980s, releasing albums and songs with names such as "Under Jolly Roger", "Port Royal", "Treasure Island", "Calico Jack", "Jennings' Revenge" (about the hugely successful 1715 pirate raid by Henry Jennings) and "Rogues en Vogue".
"Pirate Master" is a CBS reality show which premiered on May 31, 2007. "Pirate Master" is about a modern day pirate crew searching for lost treasure. The National Geographic Channel is airing a documentary about Samuel Bellamy on January 7, 2008 called "Pirate Treasure Hunters." This features footage of the exploration of the wreck of the Whydah Gally by excavation expert Barry Clifford.
"Long John Silver" is portrayed as an anti-hero in the 2008 novel "SILVER--My Own Tale As Told By Me With A Goodly Amount Of Murder" by Edward Chupack. (External Link)
Various variants on the pirate idea exist, notably "space pirates" in science fiction, such as the TV series "Firefly," that imagine future space shipping subject to similar pressures as shipping in the Age of Exploration. Pirates are also common mascots and names of sports teams.
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